Bankruptcy

A Chapter 7 bankruptcy allows a debtor to discharge consumer debts. At the end of the bankruptcy, your legal obligation to pay these debts disappears. Your credit record will reflect your bankruptcy, but you will never pay those discharged debts.

To ensure Chapter 7 only gets used by debtors who truly need relief, Congress passed the “means test” in 2005. Bankruptcy courts use this test to determine a debtor’s eligibility for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
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If you have bankruptcy on your record, it may feel like you won’t ever be able to achieve financial normality. However, that isn’t the case.

Bankruptcy often appears to result in permanent and irreparable damage to one’s finances, making it impossible to complete large purchases. Many people are unsure whether they can buy a home after filing for bankruptcy.

Fortunately, a skilled Palm Springs attorney can help you determine the best way to purchase a piece of property after experiencing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.
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When debts pile up, many people pursue bankruptcy to resolve their financial struggles.

Depending on your situation, you can seek several categories of bankruptcies in federal court. For many California residents who lack substantial income or high-value assets, Chapter 7 is a quick and streamlined bankruptcy option that can help wipe debt from credit cards, loans, medical bills, and even past-due rent.

Not everyone will qualify for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, but if you do, you should know what to expect during the process and how long you’ll need to wait for a typical case to resolve.

Chapter 7 Explained

Chapter 7 bankruptcies work by eliminating debts without a complex repayment plan.
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Bankruptcy is a tool that individuals, businesses, and organizations can use to help them through difficult financial times. However, there are certain actions you can take while filing for bankruptcy that can sabotage the entire process for you and even lead to criminal charges.

Read on to learn about some of the things you should never do while going through bankruptcy proceedings.

Nobody likes the idea of filing for bankruptcy. But when all other options are exhausted, declaring bankruptcy can be a useful way to escape lifelong debt and get back on your feet. Like all legal processes, though, there’s a right way and a wrong way.
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Bankruptcies are triggered for many reasons. Many fall outside your control. According to one report, unpaid medical bills are the top reason for U.
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The No-Party Clause and Other Bumps in the Road

Everyone has questions from time to time about how to handle knotty problems that threaten to make life miserable. I get phone calls or emails from many of these people who hope that I can provide answers, or refer them on to someone who can. Some are minor issues or sad ones – and some of them are very serious. They cover a vast range of troubles that could happen to any of us. Here are a few recent questions that came up:

Question: Two friends and I get along really well, so we signed a lease on a house together.

Should your home, bank accounts or other property be held in joint tenancy with your partner or other family member? Many people comment to me that they don’t need an estate planning attorney because they own all their property as Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship. If they die, the property will automatically belong to the other joint tenant. No need for a Will or a Trust. No need for Probate. No need for an attorney’s services. 

Unfortunately, life is rarely that simple. There are numerous pitfalls in joint tenancy: 

         *   Joint property is exposed to the liabilities of either or both owners. If one

              owner gets a judgment against him or her, the entire property may be taken         

              to satisfy that judgment. If one is a doctor, lawyer or sole proprietor of a business

              in a highly litigious field, or if one is found at fault in an accident, or if one owner

              has a tax lien placed against the property, this may be the worst way to hold title.

          *  Joint owners lose individual control over the property. For example, with real

              property, one owner has no right to act alone in selling, making improvements,

              or refinancing the property.

          *  If one joint owner becomes mentally incapacitated, the property is in legal limbo.

              The owner can no longer convey legal title or sign ownership papers. This can

              prevent property such as a home from being sold or rented. It usually requires

              the healthy owner to go through a lengthy and expensive conservatorship

              process in Probate Court.

          *  When property passes to another owner through joint tenancy, that property

              is left outright, meaning there are no strings attached. The danger is that the

              surviving owner can then leave that asset to his new partner, or anyone else he

             chooses, and the first owner’s share of the estate never makes it to his own

             heirs. The last owner to die wins everything.

         *  When the first owner doesn’t do any estate planning, usually the second owner

             doesn’t either. Although probate may be avoided at the first one’s death, it will

             not be avoided upon the second owner’s death. In the event of simultaneous

             death, all assets held in joint tenancy must go through probate since both owners

             of record are no longer living.

         *  Even if the joint tenants do have Wills or Trusts, the surviving partner will receive

             the deceased joint tenant’s interest in the property, regardless of what that

             owner’s Will or Trust says. Wills and Trusts have no control over jointly owned

             property.

          *  Finally, transferring property into joint tenancy may have tax consequences. If

              you place another person on your bank account or a deed as a joint tenant, you

              have just given that person a gift. If the value is less than your annual gift

              exemption of $14,000.00, there may be no problem. If it exceeds that figure, you

              must file a gift tax return with the IRS. You may or may not owe taxes on the gift,

              depending upon your financial situation.

I hope you will give the joint tenancy risks careful consideration before you try to use it as a do-it-yourself estate planning tool. For very small estates such as those having only moderate sums in a bank account and no real property, joint tenancy can work to avoid probate and smooth the transition when a joint owner passes on. For most other estates, there are various planning tools that reduce or eliminate the risks of joint tenancy, and make far more sense.

Careful estate planning and correct property titling are especially important for same-sex couples. For partners who are not married or registered as domestic partners, it is essential to maintain as much individual control over property as possible. Couples can own homes together; have joint and individual bank and investment accounts; and own other property that they share equally, without the pitfalls of joint tenancy.

Many of my clients are same-sex couples who own various assets together. Often, we find that individual Revocable Living Trusts are the best way to maintain their property and allow each partner maximum flexibility and control over their shares. Each one creates the necessary documents to control how assets will be managed if incapacity or death should occur, and this allows each partner to pass his share on to whomever he names in the Trust. Each one has a plan that covers many of the risks in life, and gives partners greater peace of mind about the future.

The bankruptcy rate for Americans over age 55 is soaring. This age group now accounts for over 20% of all bankruptcies filed. Some analysts estimate that for every older person who files a bankruptcy petition, there are two more seniors who should, because of their dire financial straits.

What’s going on?  Retirees used to be seen as financially stable, kicking back on their savings and pensions, mortgages all paid off – enjoying their golden years. But not any more. Here are some of the major reasons why so many of our older generation have hit financial hard times:

          *  People are living longer, making seniors a much larger percentage of the

              population than in generations past.

          *  Retirement funds are inadequate to cover the living expenses of a longer life, and

              income has gone down in recent years – hit by the recession and lack of cost of

              living increases in social security and other pensions.

           * Property taxes and the cost of gas and ordinary consumer goods keep going up.

           * Medical expenses grow rapidly as the population ages. Medicare and other

              health care insurance plans do not begin to cover all costs of medical care for

              older people.

           * Seniors often have to rely on credit cards to pay their routine bills, burying them

              in debt they will never pay off.  This group now has more credit card debt

              than younger generations – debt that was often unthinkable for seniors only

              10 or 20 years ago.

           * Late payments on credit cards and other unsecured debts result in penalties and

              a huge increase in interest rates to over 30% interest in most cases. This makes

              even modest debts spiral rapidly out of control.

But wait…aren’t retirees “judgment proof?” Why should seniors worry about their debts, when, in most cases, creditors can’t touch their pensions or their homes during their lifetimes? If social security or IRA income each month can’t be levied by a creditor, grandma or grandpa can stop stressing, right? And if a creditor puts a lien on your aging mother’s home, what does it matter to her?  She will continue to live there until she dies, and after that, the creditor will get the money from the sale of her house.

“Judgment proof” is not the best way to describe the financial situation of many older Americans. The term is commonly used to mean that creditors can’t collect money from assets that are protected – pension, IRA, or social security income – or the home you live in, while you continue to live there. But a creditor can still file a lawsuit against you, and a court might agree that you owe the money and issue a judgment against you. So technically, virtually no one is “judgment proof.”

A better term is “collection proof” – because, even if you have a judgment against you, the creditor can’t collect it from your exempt assets. So if you have debts you can’t pay after you retire, or even if there is a judgment against you, why should you care? Here are two very important reasons:

       *  Creditors are shameless and relentless. They never give up trying to get money

           out of you. They call, send mail, and use every means to get your attention. To

           an older person who may be in declining health, or barely able to make ends

           meet every month, the constant harassment by creditors takes a heavy      emotional and physical toll.

       *  Creditors will often get judgments against you. You must respond to the Notice

           or Summons you receive from the court. If you do not take action, the court may

           very well authorize a levy or a freeze on your bank account. The county sheriff

           in your county is responsible for carrying out the levy, by ordering your bank to

           freeze your account and/or pay the debt out of your account. Neither the sheriff

          nor the bank may know that all of the funds in your account came from pensions

          or other exempt income. Once a freeze is in place, it can take weeks or months

         to get it reversed. In the meantime, your money is out of your reach.

Creditors can ruin a retiree’s life in ways that are far worse than their effect on younger people. Seniors have few chances to go back to work to pay off debt. There is little or no prospect of their paying off their debts in their lifetime. Credit card debt, in particular, grows rapidly, as retirees pay higher interest on interest over the years. A lien on a senior’s home to pay off that inflated debt after death often means there is little or nothing left to pass on to their children or grandchildren.

For retirees caught in the clutches of creditors, bankruptcy is often a good solution.

It usually wipes out credit card, medical and other unsecured debts, and makes it possible for most people to again manage their everyday living expenses within their income. A huge relief and peace of mind make a fresh start possible for seniors.

The Attorney General heads up the California Department of Justice (DOJ), and according to the department’s mission statement, has broad responsibilities to enforce laws fairly and impartially; ensure justice, safety and liberty for everyone; encourage economic prosperity, equal opportunity and tolerance; and safeguard California’s human, natural, and financial resources for this and future generations.  Justice is served by helping to prevent and prosecute criminal activity, protect consumers from victimization, and promote public safety.

The Attorney General can’t give specific legal advice about personal problems or represent individual Californians, but whether you realize it or not, your life is touched by many of the Attorney General’s actions every day. Here are some of the major areas that are designed to support your safety, general welfare, and quality of life: